Gig Review: RVIVR at Bethnal Green Working Men's Club, London 5/6/18

Bethnal Green Working Men's Club isn't a place I fully expected to spend to spend a Tuesday evening in June enjoying some punk rock goodness but this week that was indeed the case. Everything Sucks Music had taken over the place for two nights to put on Olympia, Washington punks RVIVR, one of my favourite bands of the past few years. I would have loved to go to both nights but unfortunately I had to work on the Wednesday night. Not to worry though as one time is better than none and it had been over eighteen months since I last saw RVIVR – and that was in Florida. It had been way too long since RVIVR had played London so it was sure to be a night to remember. I was also getting the chance to see two bands I'd never seen before in the form of Personal Best and Charmpit.

First up were Lewisham four piece Charmpit. Beginning their set with an acapella version of a Britney Spears song to get themselves comfortable on stage was a unique and fun way to start things off. From there we were treated to a fun set of feminist indie pop punk. As their name would suggest, the band was full of charm not just when they were playing but between songs as well. The songs were played with a great spirit and it was clear that Charmpit were having a lovely time. This spread into the crowd as more and more people began to get into the band. What a fun way to start the night.

Personal Best are a band I've known about for a while but had never actually listened to. I've no idea why as they are long time members of the Specialist Subject Records roster which I am a fan of. After seeing their set it had me wondering even more why I had never listened to them as they were fantastic. Lead by guitarist and lead singer Katie Gatt, the band stormed through a set of power pop gems. Personally I enjoyed the faster songs the most but every single song had me tapping my toes, bopping along and wishing I could sing along. The harmonies between Katie and fellow guitarist El Morgan were a superb element of the Personal Best sound. I'm a big fan of vocal harmonies and will forever get a kick out of them.

Finally it was time for the evening's main event. RVIVR are a very popular band in London, hence the reason for two nights in a row. Bethnal Green Working Men's Club boasts a capacity of 400 people and as I looked around the room it seemed as if there was now a decent amount of people that had turned up ready to sing their hearts out. The thing that first attracted me to RVIVR was the incredible dual vocals from Erica Freas and Mattie Jo Canino. These two have some of my favourite vocals in the world of punk rock and together it's like when the Avengers assemble. It's pretty special. I first became aware of RVIVR back in 2013 after the release of their second studio album, The Beauty Between, and quickly became hooked on the band. Since then the band have only released a couple of EPs but I, and I'm sure many other RVIVR fans, have been anxiously awaiting a brand new album. Well judging from the set that RVIVR played, that new album is imminent as they squeezed in four or five brand new songs amongst many old favourites. One particular track had a nice vibe of older Gaslight Anthem which has me very excited for the new album, whenever it may be released. All the new songs were really well received but of course the old stuff got the biggest reactions. Songs such as Edge Of Living, Wrong Way/One Way, Cut The Cord, Goodbyes and Change On Me are always a pleasure to hear live. Whenever I've seen RVIVR in the past I've always thought how happy they look on stage, like performing these songs is some kind of release from their everyday lives. The dynamic between the band members makes for a very entertaining live act. They just look as if they're having the most amount of fun and this leaks into the crowd who dance and sing along to every word. RVIVR are one of the best and most important bands in punk rock right now and I love them.

This review was written by Colin Clark. Photos by Emma Prew.

News: Fandangle "Fly Away" 10 Year Anniversary One Off Show

UK ska punk legends Fandangle are returning for a one off show at the New Cross Inn on the 3rd of November to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their superb album Fly Away. How on earth is that album ten years old already!? It's going to be another of the New Cross Inn and Be Sharp Promotions' legendary ska punk all day events with doors opening at 2pm and bands playing all day. Advance tickets go on sale on Monday 11th June here.

The show also comes a month before Fandangle release a brand new album, who saw that coming!? Fandangle were one of the first UK ska punk bands I ever really got into so I'm completely over the moon to have them back again.

To keep up to date with all the information regarding the event click on this link here.

Album Review: All Talk by Our Lives In Cinema

Our Lives In Cinema are busily carving themselves out a nice reputation in the London punk rock community. Armed with an infectious enthusiasm for the scene along with some kick-ass pop punk songs, the band with the best name in the game are on a path to greatness. Back in March the five piece released a brand new EP on the mighty Umlaut Records titled All Talk. Dan has already interviewed OLIC frontman Mark for CPRW (which you can read here) but we loved the EP so much that we also decided to give it a proper review.

The three song EP begins with the track It's Always Sunny In Paterson Park. The extended intro of the song serves as a great introduction to the whole EP. The song really kicks into life when Mark's vocals begin. Delivered in a fast paced and punchy style, they steal the show and inject so much energy into the song. I loved the breakdown in the song where Mark's vocals are joined by a simple, plodding instrumentation and some superb harmonies. A really great sing along moment. The second song, Talk You Up, is more melodic and slightly edgier than what I've hear from OLIC before. I really enjoyed this different side to the band, it shows some great versatility to their song writing. OLIC have a fantastic skill at pacing their songs. They do this magnificent job of playing at a high tempo but the songs never feel rushed. They're not just playing super fast for no rhyme or reason, the song composition is brilliantly thought out. This is one of the more emotional OLIC songs as Mark's anger seems to build throughout the song. It's just superb. The final song is titled Every Year Is A Mountain. This track feels like a final song. I can imagine it being a great set closer because of its massive chorus that's so catchy you'll be singing along with it very quickly. Even if it's your first time hearing OLIC, you'll be singing along come the end of the song.

Our Lives In Cinema are seriously a top band that you should not be sleeping on. This release, as well as their previous self-titled effort, shows serious amounts of promise. I've heard great things about them live as well. I'm looking forward to finally catching them when they play with Pkew Pkew Pkew at the New Cross Inn on Tuesday 12th of June.

Stream and download All Talk here: https://ourlivesincinema.bandcamp.com/album/all-talk

Like Our Lives In Cinema here: https://www.facebook.com/Ourlivesincinema/

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Column: Punk In 2018 (This Column Is Going To Get Me Abuse)

A couple of weeks ago NOFX made some highly thoughtless and inappropriate comments. This isn't exactly a new thing for them to do and sadly is no longer surprising. This however isn't a column about what they said, it's about the aftermath and the reaction of the punk rock community. You see, opinions were incredibly split and the common argument of "what punk rock is and isn't" soon became the main theme of most threads. To be fair, before this month's punk rock controversy, the meaning of punk rock is a subject that is contested more frequently than the argument of what's better – cats or dogs? (Dogs obviously [Emma says cats, whilst proofreading this post]).

I decided to take the incredibly brave steps for putting my opinions on the subject on the Internet. Before I do, I want to put out a bit of a disclaimer to try and limit the abuse I'm expecting to come my way by people who have a different opinion to me. This is just my opinion – I'm not saying it's right or wrong, it's just the way I see it. Please be nice and just see this as one person's views on a subject. He doesn't judge you on your opinions so please show him the same courtesy. Disclaimer/begging people not to be horrible to me out of the way, let's get on with it.

So, to my knowledge and belief, when punk rock first began in the late 1970s it was seen as a way to fight back against a society where you felt oppressed. This was done by playing short fast songs which had strong political messages or were just shocking for the time. At the time, this really did define what being punk was. The more shocking you could be, the more punk you could be. In the next big punk explosion during the 1990s the big political messages began to fade away and the message of a lot of punk rock began to centre around feeling like a misfit and trying to find your place in the world. The shocking nature of early punk rock remained as well but had shifted towards crude humour – basically dick and fart jokes.

In the past few years, there has been a major shift in what many punk bands are talking about. To my knowledge, bands seem a lot more focussed on spreading a more socially aware message. Of course politics and finding your place remain big parts of the subject matter but bands have now added subjects such as equal rights, mental health, building a community and not being afraid to be yourself. Humour, of course, remains but the more modern bands tend to have more of a self-depreciating humour than crude. Bands use their time on stage to try to help and educate people with messages of positivity and, for me, that's a much better environment to be a part of. It's nice to listen to an album or come away from a punk show feeling empowered and wanting to help make a change, not just in the punk scene but in the world in general.

That for me is what punk means in 2018. Whereas in the past it was about being an anarchist and trying to bring down the system by rebelling against everything, now it's about working together and trying to make things better for everyone. The spirit of rebellion remains but now the punks are so much more positive about how they get the message they want to spread out there to the people. The punk rock scene is now an incredible community-driven environment as well. There are small scenes all other the UK who help each other put on shows, share events, review albums and generally just support great music. These small scenes form a bigger community throughout the whole country of like minded people who work together to try and create something better. There are no egos, no drama, no dicks. It's about people coming together to build something brilliant. It's about coming together and sharing your thoughts and opinions in a positive way. The DIY ethos is potentially stronger than ever, only there's been a change. It's not so much about doing it by yourself, it's about doing it with others and doing it with your friends. In 2018, punk rock has evolved from the shock tactics of old. Sure I still love a crude joke from time to time but never at the expense of other people. If it makes people feel uncomfortable, it's probably not necessary. Punk rock is this really special movement that can be used to achieve some great things and generally make your world a better place.

So, in summary, I think that punk rock in 2018 is about working together in a community to positively achieve what you believe in and to try to make everything better.

Punk rock used to be about smashing the system, now it's about fixing it.

This column was written by Colin Clark.

News: Polite Rot Festival Announces More Bands

Last night the organisers of South London punk rock festival Polite Riot announced the latest wave of bands playing the event. The festival is taking place at the New Cross Inn between June 22nd and 24th is being headlined by Teenage Bottlerocket, A Wilhelm Scream and Apologies, I Have None. Also playing the festival are Darko, Drones, Eat Defeat, Eat Dirt, Local Mad Man, Love Songs, Mean Caesar, Mug, No Matter, On A Hiding To Nothing, Only Strangers, Ships Down (last ever show), Snap Out, Spoilers, Swan Prince and Zombies No. What a line up! You can get all the details for the event here and you can buy weekend and day tickets here.

Top Tens: Emma’s Top Ten Punk Rock Influences

To celebrate CPRW’s fourth birthday this week, Colin asked me to write my very own top ten punk rock influences – finally! Not that I’ve actually been a part of the blog since the beginning but Colin and Dan have already written theirs and I guess I’m next in line as I’ve been contributing to CPRW for nearly three years.

Although I’ve been secretly hoping that Colin would ask to/let me write my top ten for a while, I didn’t actually have a set-in-stone list so it did take some thinking and narrowing down. I decided to order my top ten chronologically – number 10 is my oldest influence and number 1 is, sort of, the most recent. Here we go…

10. Mama and Papa Prew

I’m surprised how few mentions of parents I’ve seen in other people’s top tens over the years… My mum and dad both absolutely love music – it’s how they met – and that means that I grew up with music always playing in our family home. They didn’t exactly listen to punk but there was a great variety of ‘rock’ music on offer from dad’s favourites Pink Floyd, Neil Young and R.E.M. to mum’s Bon Jovi obsession and plenty of (relatively speaking) newer bands as well – Oasis, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Foo Fighters, etc. These days my parents listen to a lot of folk and Americana, alongside the classic rock, which I like too. Like me, they love live music and probably go to far more gigs a year than your average person. Oh and mum loves dancing to Against Me!

9. The Pitz Club in Milton Keynes

So my parents got me into rock music pretty young, then when I was around 13 or 14 I’d discovered some newer rock bands of my own – y’know the kinds that were played on the radio. Mum and dad took me to my first few gigs around that age, which involved driving to Birmingham or similar Midlands locations, but I also ventured out with some of my school friends to Milton Keynes’ premiere music venue – The Pitz. By premiere I mean it was the best on offer at the time (long before the brilliant Craufurd Arms or MK11 venues that the town now has) even if it was a bit of a dive – a dive in a function room at a leisure centre that is. We used to go to The Pitz to see local bands play and it was here that I discovered ska punk… and, most importantly, Capdown! It took me a few years to get back into ska punk but I appreciate my initial introduction to it back in the day.

8. The Gaslight Anthem

I don’t have much to say about The Gaslight Anthem that I haven’t said multiple times on this blog before, most recently in my classic album review of The ’59 Sound (which you can and should read here). Basically they are, and always will be to some extent, my favourite band. Without them I don’t know if I would have discovered punk rock. I just really love this band, their songs and their sound.

7. Frank Turner

Yes, the controversial Frank Turner. He’s very much like marmite in the punk rock community isn’t he? I appreciate that not everyone likes his views or his music – I’m not even sure I like much of his new music and I try not to read into his personal opinions and actions too much – but I can’t deny that he’s been a huge influence on me and my music taste over the last 11 or 12 years. (That’s actually longer than I realised and it’s longer than I’ve been listening to The Gaslight Anthem!) I’m sure I’m not the first person to have been introduced to acoustic and/or folk ‘punk’ through Frank Turner and I’m sure I won’t be the last. It’s his man-with-acoustic-guitar singing down-to-earth songs that I love the most – Love, Ire & Song is obviously the best FT album. I’ve seen Frank live more than any other artist although I am now content not to see him again for the time being. I’ve moved on a bit in my listening tastes but I will never take for granted what an impact this skinny half-arsed English country singer has had on me.

6. Chuck Ragan and The Revival Tour

From one acoustic punk to another… completely different one from the other side of the pond. I know, I know, most punks would have Hot Water Music on their top ten list and not the solo endeavour and self-curated collaborative folk music event of one of the band members. But I ask you, did you go to the 2011 UK Revival Tour where Chuck Ragan was joined by Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio, Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem and Dave Hause of The Loved Ones? No? Then you won’t have witnessed the amazing 3+ hour musical experience of these guys, plus Jon Gaunt and Joe Ginsberg, playing each other’s songs as if they were just having a jam at Chuck’s house. Also, Chuck Ragan – what a guy! I took the aforementioned mama and papa Prew to see Mr Ragan a couple of years ago and mum in particular just had the best time – she says it rekindled her love for live music too. Awesome.

5. Mike Davies and the Radio One Punk Show

In 2010–11 I was studying for my graphic design degree in Falmouth, Cornwall. I would go into the studio to work alongside my pals on my course and then plug into my iTunes library or, if I hadn’t listened to it already, catch up on the Punk Show with Mike Davies. It was broadcast at 2am one day in the week so I never listened to it live – did many people actually listen live? I was still relatively new to punk rock at this point but I knew that I liked the genre, probably more than other genres, and so listening to this show was a great way for me to discover some new bands. Sadly the Punk Show got cut from the Radio One roster in 2014 but the legend lives on!

4. The Menzingers

I’m not really sure which I discovered first, the Punk Show or The Menzingers, as it was around about the same time really. It was pre-On The Impossible Past but post-Chamberlain Waits, yet I was listening to their first album the most. There was just something infectiously enticing about A Lesson In The Abuse Of Information Technology and I couldn’t stop listening to it. It was actually a lot shoutier and screamier than my general tastes, even for punk rock, but for some reason I loved it all the same. When On The Impossible Past was released in 2012 I wasn’t immediately hooked on it. It was really different to the band’s earlier albums and it took some time (a few days) to grow on me. But when I had got accustomed to it there was no turning back, my Menzos obsession had well and truly begun. Basically, for everyone one song I listened to by another band I listened to three Menzingers songs. I absolutely loved them – and still do. They have got more and more popular over the years and therefore play bigger venues these days but seeing them at the Underworld in 2013 was a turning point for me. I went to a proper punk gig by myself and it was exhilarating.

3. Bangers and Specialist Subject Records

I’ve already mentioned that I went to university in Cornwall but there wasn’t really much of a punk scene in Cornwall, at least not one that I knew about or had ventured into. However, I did know about a number of South West of England punk bands. My long-time favourite of these bands, who also happen to be the Cornish ones, are Bangers. I listened to them a hell of a lot whilst at uni, alongside bands such as Above Them (who I always think were from Wales but they weren’t, they were from Yorkshire), The Arteries, The Cut Ups, Great Cynics and OK Pilot. Many of these bands were either on or associated with Specialist Subject Records, a DIY UK label that was of course co-created by Andrew from Bangers. Ironically I never saw Bangers live until I’d left Cornwall – however I did travel back to Falmouth to see them support fellow Cornish band Crowns after leaving. I was gutted when Bangers broke up in 2016 but I got to go to their last ever show (it was emotional) which was also a celebration of Specialist Subject Records. Discovering Bangers and their labelmates gave me an insight into the underground UK punk scene, which leads me in nicely to my next pick…

2. The DIY punk scene in the UK

It took me several years of listening to punk rock to actually start seeking out DIY punk shows in the UK. Obviously I’d been going to gigs since I was a teenager but that was generally to see bands with my friends – or my dad – who also liked the same bands. By the end of university I had this ever growing love for punk rock but no friends who might want to go see such music live with me. That’s why forcing myself to go it alone to see The Menzingers was such a turning point for me. Before too long I didn’t care if I had to go alone, I had to get my live punk rock fix. Throughout 2014 and 2015 I gradually upped my attendance at DIY punk shows, mostly in London, then I met Colin… and our favourite thing to do together is go to a gig. The scene itself is just so welcoming and the music is pretty alright too. I don’t think I properly realised just how amazing our punk scene is in the UK until MPF this year. Everyone from the different scenes all over the UK, including our usual London crowd, travelled to punk rock Mecca, aka Manchester, and just had the most amazing time. There were friendly faces everywhere, high fives and hugs a’plenty and just so, so much love for punk rock. It makes my insides all fuzzy thinking about it.

1. Colin’s Punk Rock World

Well, we’ve come full circle. I’ve discovered a hell of a lot of bands through writing for and reading CPRW. Some of my favourites albums of recent years are those that I reviewed for this ’ere blog. Obviously most of that is down to the blog’s namesake who also happens to be someone I share my home and heart with but I don’t want to get all soppy with this post. It was Colin who encouraged me to write my first review for the blog (a gig review/ramble of The Gaslight Anthem’s ‘last’ show with Against Me! supporting) although I was quite happy just to redesign the logo and blog layout. Of course, the other members of the team are all wonderful and vital parts of what makes CPRW so great – plus it’s fun having our group chat to discuss all things punk rock together. I love our little blog family.

This top ten was written by Emma Prew.

Album Review: Schmaltz by Spanish Love Songs (by Richard Mair)

No, at CPRW Towers we haven’t lost our minds and this isn’t a review of a compilation of the finest works by Ricky Martin, Shakira or whichever of the Iglesias fellas the kids are digging these days. Instead it’s the second album by the Californian punk rock miserablists; and it’s a belter!

Bridging the gap nicely between the Menzingers gruff melodic punk and the Wonder Years pop heavy emo, Spanish Love Songs have enough to win over a casual listener of either band with their accessible melodies, relatable lyrics and sing-a-long anthems. In fact A-F records have somewhat of a coup on their hands with a record that could quite easily make many a punks end of year lists and marks a stellar step-up on 2016’s brilliant but somewhat flawed at times “Giant Sings the Blues”. In all honesty despite the obvious comparisons to the Menzingers and Wonder Years I’d argue that there are more similarities with fellow AF Records alumni “Worship This!” for the musicality and rawness (think the perfect combination of their debut album “Tomorrow, I’ll Miss You” with its more mellow approach and the more breakneck sophomore album “Mint”); coupled with Signals Midwest through the sombre lyrical storytelling and ability to reuse past lyrics to create nods and parallels between songs. What I’m trying to say is if you have any sort of interest in modern gruff punk or Midwestern emo you should find yourself at right at home.

The album opens with the organ heavy, vocal storytelling of “Nuevo” with a whimsical Dylan Slocum reminiscing about happier times concluding with the recognition that we are in charge of our own destinies with the passionate closing lines of “Well fuck I’m miserable, which means it’s me that hasn’t changed or moved an inch out of this place that doesn’t mean I want to end up this way”. It’s a song that really sets the album up acting more as an introduction (think An Introduction to the album by the Hotelier, in how it provides the context and environment that the album lives and breathes in).

If the core of the song wasn’t spectacular enough, the way the tempo and melody kick in as a bridge into the second song “Sequels, Remakes and Adaptations” will instantly win you over on the first listen – with a fast, breakneck pace, great chorus and excellent vocal delivery that grabs you by the throat. Using the opening of the album in this way isn’t anything new but the song writing and emotion contained within the angsty lyrics really sets this apart.

The miserableness doesn’t end there either. Both “Bellyache” and “Buffalo, Buffalo”. The former a proper Midwestern style emo tune that evokes the most recent Menzingers releases at their story-telling best. Its lyrics show a guilt and remorse that won’t go away; it’s the kind of relatable song that has an ability to emotionally connect. The final third explodes from a quiet refrain into a throaty sing-a-long that reminds me of Elway at their finest. The second of this duo is a more chugging typical melodic punk rock song, its chorus destined to fill many a basement and club with many voices joining in in unison. Again it’s a hauntingly emotional song but brings some degree of positivity about escaping with loved ones and cutting yourselves off. Both are excellent high points on the album but as a combo work perfectly together.

Despite the obvious miserable content, the music itself is very upbeat. This juxtaposition works best on songs such as “The Boy Considers his Haircut” or “Joanna on Five Acts”. Both having their epic sing-a-long moments, or using the quieter moments to build the tension and angst, culminating in an angry and passionate Dylan Slocum straining to get every ounce of emotion out of the songs; in particular on “Joanna” where he cries “Why d’you leave without me” over and over.

The final three songs are equally as epic and the quality doesn’t let up in the closing quarter of the album. “Beer and NyQuil” is the perfect distillation of their Menzingers-meets-Wonder Years sound, whilst closing song “Aloha to No One” rounds the album off in a contemplative and reflective state, with its simple acoustic refrain slowing the tempo down but not the angst or passion which still burns throughout the song through Dylan’s vocal delivery.

Schmaltz is a triumph of an album. It’s taken an eternity to write this review for a couple of reasons (much to Colin’s ongoing amusement and no doubt frustration)! First of all I come back to the parallel to the Hoteliers “Home Like No Place Is There” as it’s an album that has so many layers and textures, hidden depths and stunning highs; it’s a living and breathing album full of life and introspection, self-awareness and determination, but also of isolation, loneliness and longing. It’s helped by the fact that it’s a proper grower of an album too. On first listen I knew it was good but the ability of the songs to get stuck in your head, to feel Dylan’s anguish and emotion make it a true stand out that only grows through further listens. Their debut album was good but this has the potential to be truly career defining!

Stream and download Schmaltz here: https://spanishlovesongs.bandcamp.com/album/schmaltz

Like Spanish Love Songs here: https://www.facebook.com/SpanishLoveSongs/

This review was written by Richard Mair.